Jolie makes first public appearance after surgery

Angelina Jolie made her first public appearance since announcing her double mastectomy on Sunday, joining fiance Brad Pitt on the red carpet in London where she welcomed the debate on women’s health that the surgery had sparked.

The Oscar-winning actress has stayed out of the spotlight since announcing her operation in a New York Times column last month, saying the decision was made after finding she carried a gene giving her an 87 percent chance of getting breast cancer.

The 37-year-old mother of six, praised for her courage in publicly announcing her surgery, is now reported to be planning another operation to remove her ovaries as the BRCA1 gene also gives her a 50 percent chance of ovarian cancer.

On the red carpet for the world premiere of Pitt’s latest movie, zombie blockbuster World War Z, Jolie praised her partner as being “a wonderful man and a wonderful father.

“I’m very, very grateful for all the support ... and I have been very happy just to see the discussion of women’s health expanded and that means the world to me, “ she told reporters.

Jolie’s mother, actress Marcheline Bertrand, died from ovarian cancer in 2007 at the age of 56 and her aunt, 61-year-old Debbie Martin, died last week as a result of breast cancer.

Pitt said he was proud of Jolie for her decision to have a mastectomy for the sake of their family and to share that experience.

“When she’s faced with a problem — and we have known this was coming for some time — she takes it by the horns,” Pitt, 49, told reporters. “I’m super proud of her.”

In an interview published in the Guardian newspaper, Douglas appeared to blame his own battle with throat cancer on oral sex — although that interpretation was later disputed by one of his representatives.

The Guardian quoted Douglas as attributing his illness to the HPV virus spread through oral sex. When asked about his cancer, Douglas said, “without wanting to get too specific, this particular cancer is caused by HPV (human papillomavirus), which actually comes from cunnilingus.”

In response, spokesman Allen Burry said Douglas never said oral sex was the cause of his own cancer, just one of the many causes.

Health officials say smoking and drinking alcohol are the main causes of oral cancer, although the human papillomavirus has been linked to one kind of throat cancer. HPV is mostly known for causing cervical cancer.

Douglas also told the Guardian he didn’t regret his years of smoking and drinking.

A spokesman for the Guardian said in an email that the paper hadn’t received any complaints about its interview either from Douglas or his representatives.

Douglas is married to the actress Catherine Zeta-Jones. He is currently appearing in a biopic about Liberace titled Behind the Candelabra.

Married

A spokesman for former Facebook president and Napster co-founder Sean Parker says the wealthy Web entrepreneur has married singer-songwriter Alexandra Lenas.

Matthew Hiltzik says the couple wed Saturday evening in front of 300 family members and friends in Big Sur, Calif. He says the couple’s daughter, Winter, participated in the ceremony.

Parker helped start the music-sharing site Napster and was an early Facebook adviser who served as its first president. He was portrayed by Justin Timberlake in the movie The Social Network. Forbes estimates the 33-year-old’s net worth at $2 billion.

Cancer diagnosis

Soul singer Sharon Jones has cancer and has canceled plans for an album and tour in 2013. A Monday news release says Jones has stage-one bile duct cancer and needs immediate surgery.

Jones and her band the Dap-Kings had planned to release “Give the People What They Want” on Aug. 6 and were already touring. The singer was forced to miss a few shows recently while looking for a cause of her illness. Doctors expect the 57-year-old to make a full recovery.

Stamp for Cash

A yearlong celebration of Johnny Cash’s legacy will end this week with the issue of a new postal stamp and free public concert.

The new Johnny Cash Forever stamp goes on sale Wednesday and to celebrate Cash’s son, John Carter Cash, and several friends and family members will gather at Ryman Auditorium. The stamp is based around a promotional shot for the 1963 album “Ring of Fire: The Best of Johnny Cash.” To Cash it looks like a 45 or 78 RPM record cover and is unlike the usual offerings — matching his father’s legacy.

Wednesday’s concert features Cash family members, including the late singer’s brother and sister, Tommy Cash and Joanne Cash Yates, and friends Randy Travis, Marty Stuart, Larry Gatlin, and the Oak Ridge Boys. Jamey Johnson and the Roys also are scheduled to perform. The limited-edition stamp, part of the U.S. Postal Service’s Music Icon Series, will be on sale at the concert and at the Country Music Association Festival later this week.

CMT Music Awards

The CMT Music Awards are known for cross-genre mashups and this year will be no different as Lenny Kravitz and Nelly prepare to perform.

Rocker Kravitz will join co-host Jason Aldean, while rapper Nelly will team with Florida Georgia Line on their crossover hit “Cruise” during Wednesday night’s awards show airing live at 8 p.m. Wednesday from Bridgestone Arena in Nashville. Neither artist has appeared on the show before.

Aldean, who hosts with actress Kristen Bell, has mixed it up before, inviting Ludacris on the show two years ago to perform his hit “Dirt Road Anthem.” He has not announced what song he’ll play with Kravitz.

Nelly helped the duo Florida Georgia Line remix its country hit “Cruise” and it’s now making an impact on pop charts.

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